Improvement in bee-hives



PATENT N QEEICE.

JOSEPH R. EAST, OF FINCASTLE, TENNESSEE.

IMPRovi-:MENTN BEE-Elves.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 144,750, dated November 18, 1873; application iled August 5, i873.

To all whom t may concern:

Beit known that I, J osEPH R. Ensr, of Fincastle, in the county of Campbell and State of Tennessee, have invented a new and Improved Bee-Hive; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawing forming part of this specifica tion, in whichp Figure 1 is a sectional elevation of the hive, and Fig. 2 a similar view on the line was of Fig. l. Fig. "3 is a top view of the same. Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the Ventilating attachment.

My invention is a bee-hive so constructed that honey can be removed with perfect safety,

yet Without injuring the bees. The whole or a part of the bees can be removed with equal facility. It is well ventilated. It is also provided with a means of protection againstmoths, and is adapted for the use of wire basket for receiving the bees, and giving them air when removing honey or part ofthe brood, or at other times. The hive is simple in construction, and can be made at small expense.

The case or body of the hive is divided into two compartments, the upper one, A, being the honey-chamber, the lower one, B, the broodchamber. These chambers communicate with each other by small apertures t', which are y opened or closed at will by a slide operated from the outside by meansof handles b b. Each chamber, also, has a door on the back side of the hive, K and L, and is provided with a movable frame, a and a', in which are fitted comb-frames c c, their lateral movement being prevented by notches, in which they are fitted. The bottom C of the hive is made detachable,the same being adapted to slide in grooves; and beneath this bottom is a false bottom, D, used as a moth trap, and pro-` vided with openings d d, leading from the outside of the hive. 4The top E of the hive is detachable, and is provided with two venti i `lators, "e e, which may be opened or closed, asj

required;` also, with a smoke hole, F, closed by a removable cover, Gr. H is the entrance of the brood chamber, which can be closed by the slide I. J is a hinged shelf or alighting-board, which can be folded against the hive when not in use. A ledge, f, runs around the hive under the openings of the moth-trap. y

In Fig. 4. I have shown a wire basket with a small opening, g, in one end, and provided with thumb screws h, to facilitate handling. The basket `is applied, in practice, to the smoke-hole F, or-the Vbeeentrance H., as desired, and as hereinafter described.

To hive bees, the bottom() and the mothtrap D are drawn out. The hive is then placed over the swarm, the bottoms being returned as soon as the bees have entered the hive.

In the operation of robbing or removing the honey, the bee-basket is attached tothe bee-entrance H, the ventilators and smokehole in the top are opened, and, communie cation between the chambers being also open, smoke is blown through the smoke-hole `F until all the bees are driven into the broodchamber. Then, communication between the chambers being cut oit by the slidethe honey can be taken from the upper chamber by removing the whole frame a, or the comb-i`rames c c singly. `Todo this more readily, the door K'may be `opened by loosening the screws 7c k.

To examine the brood chamber, or to remove the old brood-comb, which it is often necessary to do, the cover of the smoke-hole in the top is removed, the bee-basket put on in its place, and the bee-entrance closed by the slide. rlhe bottom of the hive, and also the moth-trap, are drawn from their places and smoke applied to the bottom ot' the hive. The aperture between the two chambers being open, the bees are driven into the upper chamber and into the bee-basket, the latter serving, as also in the former operation, to supply them with fresh air. Access to the brood-chamber can be had through the door L by removing the screws l l. In this operation, also, the frame a a maybe removed, or a part of the comb-frames. y

Having thus described my invention, what false bottom D, in combination with the bot tom c and openings d d in the sideof the/hive,

as shown and described.

Witnesses J. OVERTON, W. R. MARS.

JOSEPH R. EAST. 

